Turning a new page for the Papendick’s in Senegal, but first a little background.
We moved to Senegal in 2009 with a two year old and no knowledge of the French language or any of the many local dialects to be found in West Africa. Our first few months in Senegal were spent learning French and getting to know the local culture. The plan was that we would learn French in Dakar and then move up to Mauritania to develop a project with some partners. As so often happens complications arose and instead we moved to the village of Niaguis in the south of Senegal to help an ailing Seventh Day Adventist clinic.
 |
| Flowers on our rooftop |
Fresh out of a Public Health Master's program, we knew a whole lot of nothing. We were faced with challenges that we had not been faced with in our classes back in California. By God’s grace, and a lot of errors, we slowly started to find our way. Over and over we saw God’s hand at play in the functioning of the clinic, the patients who came to be treated, and the various projects we tried to work on with our local friends.
Our whole world was rocked in 2012 with the birth of a baby at the other end of the village. Sadly the family had not chosen the services of our clinic, but only called us just as the mother was on her last breaths. The ambulance was called to take her to the hospital in the next large town, but it was too late. Instead we took home a little girl who had only had water and sugar for her first three days of life. Her maternal grandmother wanted her to die as she was worried that the spirit of her mother would come looking for her little baby. One of the neighbor ladies stepped in and insisted that the baby should be taken to the clinic.
Adoption was not our first idea. Our intention was to get some meat on the little frail bones, stabilize the little thing and then return her to her father. A few days after her arrival at our home a delegation from the village asked if we would take full care of the little one. The long process started to find paperwork for her to be ours. Visits to government offices, misunderstandings with local village helpers, and a judge who would not budge created a serious problem. No way were we going to be able to adopt this little bundle of energy.
Two years later a change in leadership came to the clinic and we found ourselves without a job. God led us to work in Lebanon with the Middle East North Africa Union of SDA. After two and a half years, with sadness, we chose to leave the country we had come to love and return to Senegal. We now had a new baby (toddler) with us, but we wanted to be reunited with the one we had been forced to leave behind.
Back in Senegal again with the help of friends we were able to get employment as substitute teachers and tutors, while at the same time homeschooling three crazy kids. Working as substitute teachers and tutors was the last thing either of us had ever dreamed of doing. Yet by God’s grace we learned a lot about ourselves and the world.
Before returning to Senegal, we had several ideas of what we wanted to do. One of these ideas was to start a small training school. A school where young people could learn about practical trades and also about the Bible and health. Our plan was to work with some partners, but after that didn’t work out we settled into a routine of work and just tried to keep our heads above water.
LaRae was asked to be a science teacher in 2018 at the local Evangelical school for missionary kids. The timing was not right until 2019 when she agreed to teach all of the science classes for the high school. By God’s grace, all three kids had free tuition and for the first time they were in a real school. The year passed well until COVID 19 came in like a whirlwind. Forcing LaRae to learn about teaching online and the kids to learn how to study online. Boaz was without work as there is no need for substitutes during a pandemic.
Normally this would be a huge headache and would have upset us in a number of ways, but in our situation it turned out to be a tremendous blessing. What rocked our world more than Covid is a pregnancy despite surgical precautions taken to avoid this kind of surprise. Thankfully, during the time LaRae felt the worse, she was able to teach from the comfort of a bean bag.
LaRae had promised to work for two years at the evangelical school. Yet, since her due date is sometime in September, it makes teaching science a difficult option. Thus the promised two years will only be one and the kids will no longer have free schooling as she won’t be teaching. In trying to wrap our minds around our new reality and trying to figure out what to do next we have fallen back on an old plan. To buy land, start a small training program and help others as best we can.
Over the last few weeks we have been looking at land. God has put people in our path who have helped us in so many ways. We can see His hands guiding us on our path. With the help of these friends we have looked at all kinds of places, from empty lots, orchards, and an abandoned hotel that needs to be demolished.
The two options before us would be to buy land that has fruit trees on it and then transform it into what we envision, or to buy land with a house, well, outbuildings etc. We have looked at several places that are quite appealing, though one of them has stood out above the rest. The one that stands out has given us sticker shock, though we don’t have a concrete price for the land yet as the owner is still coming to grips with the fact that it is time to sell and needs to do some assessments to find a fare price.
This outstanding piece of land is an organic farm, with many fruit trees, a large garden, a house, solar electricity, a well, staff housing, and a few animals. The whole family agrees that it really is the perfect place.
We don’t have the money necessary to buy this property. As we look at the world today we wonder if we really should be investing a lot of money into a farm? Our minds are full of ideas of what could be done. But we cannot live in dreams we have to live in reality and right now that reality is prayer. Please pray with us for the ability to see, understand, and follow God’s will for us at this critical juncture in our work in Senegal.
Comments